Description

Guilt: The Bite of Conscience is the first book to study guilt from a wide variety of perspectives including those of psychology, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, evolutionary psychology, anthropology, six major religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism), four key moral philosophers (Aristotle, Kant, John Stuart Mill, and Nietzsche), and the law. Katchadourian first explores the ways in which guilt functions within individual lives and intimate relationships, looking at behaviors that typically induce guilt in both historical and modern contexts. He then turns to the way the capacity for moral judgments develops within the individual lives and through evolutionary processes, taking up both normal and pathological (whether excessive or inadequate) manifestations of guilt.

The second part of the book turns to the socio-cultural aspects of guilt. In what ways does religion deal with guilt? Does it compound it or help individuals to resolve it? How do the major religious traditions differ in their conceptions of guilt? Secular alternatives in dealing with guilt are considered in the light of the key moral philosophies that have exerted the most influence in Western cultures. Finally, Katchadourian addresses the ways in which society attempts to come to terms with guilt as culpability through the legal process.

This personal work draws from, and integrates, material from extensive primary and secondary literature. It is a reliable guide to what scholars, investigators and clinicians have to say about the topic. Through the extensive use of literary and personal accounts, this book provides an intimate picture of what it is like to experience this universal emotion. While the book is not intended to be a self-help manual, each chapter addresses the issue of how to deal with guilt from a particular point of view. Written in clear and engaging prose, with a touch of humor, Guilt should appeal to a wide audience.

About the Author

Herant Katchadourian is Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry and Human Biology at Stanford University and former president of the Flora Family Foundation. He has received numerous awards, including Stanford's Dinkelspiel Award and the Lyman Award from the Stanford Alumni Association.

Praise for Guilt: The Bite of Conscience…

"I am deeply impressed with the value of Katchadourian's Guilt. In an authentic tour de force, Katchadourian covers clinical, psychological, religious and legal aspects of the subject in historical context with analytical penetration. He does so in depth and at the same time with lucidity and impeccable judgment. Altogether, this is a book of profound and enduring value on a subject of fundamental importance in human experience."—David A. Hamburg, MD, President Emeritus, Carnegie Corporation of New York

"Religion is so often connected with guilt. Herant Katchadourian does a masterful job of explicating the myriad dimensions of guilt within and well beyond theology. He distinguishes its positive dimensions from its negatives. He helps us separate it from many of its imposters, like clinical depression, while still elucidating its interaction with these other conditions. Behind all is a deep concern for mature ethics, cleansing rationality, and profound religious sensibility."
—Scotty McLennan, Dean for Religious Life, Stanford University